Stephanie

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This tea arrived today from Amazon—yay!

This brews a shade lighter then the Teas Etc. pu’erh I have now. The scent is very much like a tablet of Ibarra chocolate from Mexico—which is a dry, bittersweet, cinnamon-infused cocoa. I don’t taste much of the earthy puerh—I get mostly the cocoa—but the earthiness is in there somehow adding depth. I would describe this tea as a bittersweet, “powdery” tasting cinnamon cocoa (not chocolate—which (obviously) is smoother and creamier) with a lingering sugariness (due to the rooibos?). When the liquid cools, a hint of woodsy mushroom appears and the earthiness becomes more pronounced. And I could detect a hint of citrus.

In short, this is yummy and very easy to drink. Try this if you’re at all a fan of chocolate…especially dark chocolate.

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Just a quick tasting note:
I whipped up a mug of this, first thing this morning. It’s a beautiful matcha—a bright, rich green. The taste is extremely fresh, creamy and slightly sweet—like the best green tea to the tenth power. This is the ultimate wake-up beverage and is 1000x better than coffee, at least for me.

I brewed this in my travel mug to bring to work. I intend to drink this all day—just resteeping the same leaves.

Impressions of the first steep (after rinsing): Surprisingly mild with a thick, slatey-ness. I have an image of of grey paving stones after a spring rainshower. They’re set in a green garden with loamy, rich, dark soil.

Wow, I’m drinking a pu’erh (the much maligned yet admired infamous pu’erh)….and I like it! I feel like I’ve been formally initiated into becoming a proper “tea aficionado”! ;)

I chose Teas Etc. for my first pu’erh because of the ease of ordering and I’ve tried their other teas before and liked them—so I was confident that they would offer no less than the best quality product (at least in this price range).

The little nest bowls are so cute! The tissue paper wrapping makes them seem like bite-size treats.

I remembered to “rinse” the leaves first by steeping the nest in boiled water for about 15 seconds then discarding the water. I was suprised on how immediately the nest disintegrated while in the water. The leaves themselves are small and broken—they almost look powdered.

Then I poured fresh hot water in my mug and I’m drinking it now (without removing the leaves). The liquid is as dark as coffee.

Here are the notes I’m detecting as I perceive them (semi stream of conciousness style):
Tree bark, loamy soil, smoke, ash, plums (?), deep green plants and roots. There is a dryness to this that is really refreshing. I had a stomachache because of a large dinner, but this seems to be easing it a bit. It does taste “powerful” but no worse than in the way of a hearty breakfast blend. This is like a breakfast blend squared—without the bitterness….and with added peat moss.
I’m also detecting notes of slate, lichen and mushrooms. This is definitely earthy—but earthy in the way of an ancient forest at midnight—on the edge of a cliff by the sea—cool and mysterious.
And there is a lingering sweetness at the back of the throat—interesting!

Last Thoughts: This is a tea I know I will be drinking often. It’s like some mysterious and magical elixir. :)

Just a little tasting note blurb….nothing really useful to add except that I can’t stop drinking this, it’s so good! It’s like I have to have at least one cup everyday.

This is my first hazelnut flavored tea—I wonder if they all taste similar to this or if everyone uses their own propietary flavorings? I wonder, is there one kind of hazelnut flavoring that’s sold that all tea blenders use? It would be neat to find out.

Yay! My second Teas Etc. order arrived today! I immediately steeped this one. Some quick impressions (because I’m supposed to be working):

This tastes like sunshine! So bright and sunny. It’s immediately uplifting. I imagine running through a meadow at springtime like Laura in Little House on the Prairie.

It’s a beautiful day here (a strange but cool combination of sun with intermittent rains) and I’ve been feeling good today so this matches nicely. :)

For some reason, I’m feeling kind of anxious tonight. I needed something calming and light. So I chose this and brewed it stronger than normal (2 heaping tsps. in 12oz with boiling water). As expected, it’s much more milky and sweet with a pronounced toastiness. This time, I detect no fruitiness (like my previous tasting note). There’s a lot of brown rice in my mug. It tastes very “home-y” and relaxing.

Love it! Just what I wanted.

I brewed this dark and strong—about 2 heaping teaspoons in 12oz. It tastes like hazelnut coffee! A little smoky and spicy, the hazelnut flavor is very strong and rich. There is a natural sweetness to this but I’m not sure if the flavoring they use is sweetened or not.

This is a refreshing change from the black teas I’ve been drinking all week!

I used the last of my 1oz. tin (about 2.5 heaping teaspoons in my 12oz. mug). The scent is super tangy and sweet—very “pink”. The tea itself is a pinkish amber and very “downy” because of the feathery white leaves. I’m tasting mostly rose petals and a little bit of strawberry. The coconut appears only as a hint of sweetness. The aftertaste reminds me a little of Cap’n Crunch’s Crunch Berries® cereal!

I think I may order more of this, eventually—but not for awhile because there are so many other teas out there to try!

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I feel so exhausted tonight…and lazy. I have just enough energy to jot down some quick impressions:

Scent: Almost sweet and a little like pine?
Color: Typical black tea appearance—deep brown amber liquid.
Taste: Astringent and woodsy with a hint of menthol—but it’s not mint. This is not as strong as Thomas Sampson—it’s much lighter-bodied.
Images: For some reason I’m reminded of those old-fashioned lacquered chinese jewelry boxes. My mom had a few. Maybe it’s the wooden aspect of the taste.
Final Thoughts: A classic black tea with an “antique” feel to it. Very easy to drink and not bitter.

UPDATE: This is so strange—I’m now on my 3rd infusion and it’s not just getting mellower, but sweeter too! A smooth and smokey honey note.

I think Jackee’s a bit shy—he lowers his guard and sweetens up only after he gets to know you.

I’m on my 3rd infusion and the bite’s mellowed out quite bit (of course).

It goes surprisingly well with a blueberry scone!

The rich purple-y raisin/date flavor of my first tasting note seems to be waning, the more that I drink this. Maybe I’m just becoming accustomed to it? Also, the scent seems to be weaker. I still like it though and will finish my pouch. It’s already almost halfway done, after arriving only last week!

Today, I was thinking how sad it was to not have any new teas to sample and note down.

I’ve been drinking basically the same two black teas for several days now (because I’m on a black tea kick, at the moment). They’re good teas but I’ve already noted them down on here and, for some reason, I don’t really like writing different notes for the same teas.

So, I was a little despondent because I had no new teas. But then I came home to discover that my first A&D order had arrived!! Wow, that was fast. I think I just ordered a couple days ago. I got Series 2 consisting of these two legendary teas. The box they were nestled in is adorable, as are the two collectable postcards and the tins themselves (I’m number 63 of 110). I really appreciate good packaging. Thank you for all the effort, Damn Fine Teas! It was like receiving a gift. :)

I immediately brewed Thomas first. From everyone else’s notes, he sounded irresistible! I love malt, I love bread, I love anything bakery. From the tin, the scent was pretty nondescript. Seemed like your basic black tea, I guess. Brewed, the scent reminds me of a watery Guinness. A Guinness of tea. And the taste? Let me just say that if you love strong breakfast teas, this is definitely for you! Thomas is a full-bodied black tea—very much like Yorkshire Tea (which is a strong, black tea blend). He has a “bite”…very tannic.

I’m not really getting any bakery, biscuity goodness. This is very dry, almost harsh. Maybe adding some cream and sugar will soften it up a bit? Too bad I don’t have either, right now.

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This is one of my favorite beverages at Starbucks. I have it pretty regularly and order it without sweetener (they use melon flavored syrup to sweeten it—up to 5 pumps in a Venti! Blech. It ruins the flavor instead of enhancing it). Lately, I’ve been having this made with soymilk.

It tastes like green tea ice cream, to me.

I love green tea ice cream.

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